Discovery of an Author : Interview with Vivaan Shah (English).
We interviewed Vivaan — Actor, and Author about his journey as an artist and writer, his latest book ‘The Forsaken Wilderness’, his career, and future projects.
The editorial team at Blessink Mag is dedicated to promoting both new and established authors, helping them reach a wider readership and audience.
Vivaan Shah is a multifaceted artist known for his captivating performances on screen and stage, as well as his thought-provoking prose. As the son of renowned actors Naseeruddin Shah and Ratna Pathak Shah, Vivaan has carved his unique path in the world of art and literature. His diverse experiences, ranging from acting in critically acclaimed films to writing compelling novels, have made him a prominent figure in contemporary Indian culture.
In this exclusive interview, we delve into the early beginnings of Vivaan’s writing journey, his deep-seated inspirations, and the profound influence of literary giants like Edgar Allan Poe and Joseph Conrad on his work. We also explore how his reading habits, love for simplicity in writing, and experiences in theatre have shaped his distinctive voice as an author.
Vivaan shares his evolution from a comic book artist and playwright to a novelist whose works resonate with readers for their rich narrative style and exploration of complex themes. His latest novel, “The Forsaken Wilderness,” has garnered widespread acclaim for its deep dive into the mysteries of fate, faith, and the blurred lines between science and superstition.
This interview offers a rare glimpse into the mind of a creative artist who is constantly pushing boundaries and redefining his craft. Vivaan’s insights on the transition from playwriting to prose, the challenges of balancing dual careers, and his thoughts on the future of his writing journey are both enlightening and inspiring.
Join us as we uncover the intricacies of Vivaan Shah’s creative process and his reflections on balancing an acting career with a passion for storytelling.
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Early Beginnings and Inspirations:
Q: You started writing at a very young age. Can you share some of your earliest memories of writing and how they shaped your journey as an author?
A: As a child I was predominantly a comic book artist, although I did write a novel then, a lot of short stories in school and that sort of thing. In my adolescence, and early twenties I was a playwright and I also wrote a lot of screenplays. So I was a dramatist, not really a person of letters. At the age of twenty four I had an epiphany: that the medium of literature is the only art form in which all you need is a pen and a piece of paper. It is not dependent on physical resources.
As someone from the world of theatre and film I found this very liberating, and from then on decided to devote myself fully to the medium of prose. As I have gone along on this path of being a novelist as opposed to a dramatist, I have realised also that the literary form is the medium that best represents how the human mind would like to think, and best exemplifies the arrangement and presentation of thought. So in that sense it has grown also to become my favourite art form.
Influence of Edgar Allan Poe:
Q: You’ve mentioned that Edgar Allan Poe has been a significant inspiration for you. What aspects of his work resonated with you the most and influenced your writing style?
A: Poe pretty much changed my life. It would be difficult to communicate the influence he has had on my work and also on my life. You see, Poe was one of the earliest proponents of what you could call metaphysical investigation; now this applies both to the human mind and also to our physical reality. No other writer in my opinion probed the nature of reality quite like Poe. Although he is known as a writer of horror, there were never any supernatural occurrences in his tales. Everything was founded in reason, logic and rationality. In terms of his aesthetic principles too I learned a great deal from him.
His essays and literary criticism are just extraordinarily illuminating, and I tend to agree with a lot of his philosophies on what art should and should not be. He was similar to Oscar Wilde in that sense. Both had very strong views on the aesthetic, and how art should be first and foremost an aesthetic experience that springs primarily from the imagination.
Love for Reading and Writing:
Q: As a voracious reader, how has your reading habit influenced your writing? Are there any particular genres or authors, apart from Poe, that have had a notable impact on you?
A: Joseph Conrad too had a huge huge influence on how I construct the prose, the rhythm of the sentence, the syntax, the poetry, and also in terms of subject matter, and texture. The nautical novels of Conrad, and Herman Melville affected me very deeply. My first two novels were crime novels and were homages to the pulp paperback tradition of Raymond Chandler, Dashiell Hammett, and Jim Thompson. My reading has pretty much formed the DNA of my writing.
In recent years I have gotten seriously into the surrealists and symbolists; the movements that originated in France — not to mention my love of the essay, I love the writings of Aldous Huxley and D.H Lawrence. My literary tastes are rather varied, and run the whole gamut from the genre based disreputable fiction to the slightly more high-brow stuff.
The Simplicity of Writing:
Q: You once said that the beauty of writing lies in its simplicity, needing only a pen and paper. How does this philosophy influence your creative process and storytelling?
A: It is the art form in which one can see one’s work materialize, the production of the work is not dependent on any external factors. One still needs to sell it, but one is still in control of the means of production. I suppose this applies to painting too, but there the tools tend to be a little more elaborate, and a larger space is required.
I’ve had too many examples before me of people who poured their heart and soul into a screenplay or a play and never got to see it materialize. I was determined that this will not happen to me! I picked an art form where after producing the work it still exists in a tangible form, not in a nebulous form that is also sort of a dream.
Balancing Acting and Writing:
Q: Balancing an acting career with writing must have its challenges. How do you manage to juggle these two creative outlets, and do they ever influence each other? How much does your craft as an author influence your movie script selection process?
A: There is no real script selection process. One does whatever work comes one’s way. I have been fortunate that I’ve gotten to be a part of some interesting projects. They do complement each other beautifully. Both are about the art of communication.
In acting one does it through expressions, body language, gestures, and the vocal facility, whereas in literature one does it through the design and arrangement of words. Style is employed differently in both professions and art forms.
Transition from Playwriting to Prose:
Q: Your journey began with playwriting before transitioning to prose. What motivated this shift, and how do you find the two forms of writing differ in terms of creative expression?
A: Play writing is an integral part of literature. I would not allot that distinction to screenwriting. Playwrights have been the backbone of the literary arts since time immemorial. A play can also be read, it can be a solely literary experience. It is my first love and I do intend to go back to it, but I have also managed to cannibalize a lot of material from my plays and put them into my books. So both fuel each other.
The only difference between play writing and prose writing is in the meter and tenor of the dialogue versus descriptive text. In the medium of prose they can be uniform, but in the writing of a play there often has to be a distinction, in that the prose can be fancy, but the dialogue does have to correspond often to how it would sound in real life as opposed to in the mind’s eye and ear.
The Journey of ‘The Forsaken Wilderness’:
Q: The idea for ‘The Forsaken Wilderness’ began when you were 15 and became a reality much later. Could you tell us more about the evolution of this story and how it developed over the years?
A: It was one of the first things I wrote back in 2014, when I shifted to the medium of prose. I fused two different sci-fi horror scenarios, and expanded them into novel form.
Now that doesn’t mean that I’ve been labouring over this book for ten years. The arrangement and organization of this novel took place, in earnest, at the beginning of 2020, right before Covid hit.
Reception and Feedback on Your Books:
Q: Your first book, ‘Living Hell,’ received mixed reviews, while ‘The Forsaken Wilderness’ has been highly praised. How do you handle varied feedback, and what do you think contributed to the success of your latest book?
A: I am very grateful that the feedback has been positive. I am a student of literary criticism, and learn from the reviews and feedback. I was nervous that the style of the book would be deemed too archaic and pretentious. But sometimes one has to take a risk. Putting any work out there is all about having the confidence of your convictions and being able to take it when someone calls what you’ve done ridiculous. It shouldn’t matter, what should matter is that this is what you wanted to do and put out into the world.
This was a style of prose I grew up loving and wanted to pay homage to, and emulate. The fact that it was accepted rather than criticized is something I am very relieved about.
Themes of Fate, Faith, and Exploration:
Q: ‘The Forsaken Wilderness’ explores themes of fate, faith, and the thin line between science and superstition. Can you elaborate on what inspired these themes and how they are reflected in the story?
A: The mystery of Faith and the mystery of Fate. These are two of the fundamentals of life. A short story by Oscar Wilde entitled ‘Lord Arthur Saville’s crime’ really illuminated these areas for me. As well as the French Novel ‘The Wages of Fear’ by George Arnaud, and Poe’s only long form novella which he ever wrote whose title is too long to be reproduced here. These works illuminated and examined, and even investigated these two themes.
I do not believe in the supernatural, and I have had my own struggles with superstition, and irrational thought. So this was a very personal exploration for me as well. It helped me in many ways.
Future Projects and Inspirations:
Q: With your fourth book on the horizon, can you give us a sneak peek into what we can expect? Additionally, how do your diverse life experiences, including your travels and studies at Doon School, continue to inspire your writing?
A: One’s life experiences always affect what one writes, but what one writes should not be solely dependent on that. There should be an element of invention, the fun of making stuff up.
My next novel is a significant departure. It does not have as much of a genre base as my first three novels, although it is a mystery. But it is a mother-daughter story, and a work that is closer to the earth. Gentler, kinder, and perhaps more humane.
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As our conversation draws to a close, Vivaan reflects on the future of his creative journey. With a new novel on the horizon, he hints at a departure from his usual genre-driven narratives towards a more grounded and emotionally resonant story. This forthcoming work, a mother-daughter tale intertwined with elements of mystery, promises to showcase a gentler and more humane side of Vivaan’s storytelling. His dedication to exploring new avenues in his writing while staying true to his artistic principles exemplifies his commitment to growth and evolution as an artist.
As he continues to navigate the intricate world of storytelling, Vivaan’s unique blend of intellectual curiosity and artistic talent ensures that his future projects will be eagerly anticipated by both readers and viewers alike.
This interview not only illuminates the depth of his artistic endeavours but also inspires us to appreciate the myriad ways in which art can enrich our lives.
We urge all to check out his book : The Forsaken Wilderness
Link to buy : https://amzn.in/d/0bEfJpR6
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Media Coverage:
Media praises and coverage of Vivaan’s book.
The Tribune : The Forsaken Wilderness’ by Vivaan Shah is a work of weird fiction that looks at real world
Link to full article : https://shorturl.at/1LHhN
The New Indian Express : The title of Vivaan Shah’s new novel, The Forsaken Wilderness, sort of prepares readers for what is in the offing — humans venturing into the abandoned wild. In this case, it is the climb up the perilous peak of Ranibaug in the Himalayas.
Link to full article : https://shorturl.at/BijrR
The Asian Age : Florid, lurid, turgid mountaineering fantasy.
Link to full article : https://shorturl.at/wcy0Y
India Today : Vivaan Shah’s latest is an homage to the Victorian whodunit as well as a critique of ‘development’
Link to the article : https://shorturl.at/2r5sn
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Contact Vivaan Shah:
Instagram : https://www.instagram.com/thesurrealvivaanshah
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